The Friendship Reunification
by ashleyo85
Summary: Set after the end of season 8. After making her and Sheldon's break permanent, Amy gets a job offer and moves across the country to Harvard. Eight years, and two children later, she makes the decision to return to Pasadena. Will she be able to reconnect with old friends, or has too much time passed?
1. Chapter 1: Moving On

**Author's note: This is my first ever fanfiction, and I've debated whether to publish it for weeks now. I hope you enjoy!**

Late May 2015

* * *

Amy sadly took one last look at her apartment in Glendale before picking the keys up off the kitchen counter and heading towards the door. With Penny and Bernadette's help, she had loaded the last of her things into the U-haul in preparation for her long drive across the country. The last few weeks had moved at a terrifyingly dizzy pace, and she still found it hard to believe that she was leaving her whole life behind.

Only a week after initiating the break between her and Sheldon, she received an incredible offer from Harvard. Not only did they want her on staff in their new state-of-the-art research facility, they were offering her an associate professorship in the Neurology department. She had immediately said yes, and until now, hadn't had any regrets.

Making her way downstairs to her car, she saw Penny and Bernadette sitting on the curb, trying to hold it together. As soon as Amy walked out of the building, Penny burst into tears.

"Oh Penny" Amy sighed embracing her friend. "I'm only moving to Boston, not Mars. You know you are welcome any time, and I will be back to visit a few times a year"

Choking back her tears, Penny pulled away from the hug. "I know Ames. But there's been so much change in the past few months, and so much more to come in the next few. It's just so overwhelming. I'm sorry I'm being so stupid and emotional!"

Amy grinned. Neither she nor Bernie had noticed that Penny hadn't really been drinking the past few weeks. It had been so chaotic that they hadn't had many girls' nights, and when they did, everything was so focused on Sheldon and Amy's split, that they never really paid much attention to anything else.

Only 7 weeks along, Penny had planned to keep her pregnancy a secret from the group until she hit the second trimester, but couldn't bear not telling Amy in person. She'd spilled the beans to her and Bernie at their last girl's night a few days ago. Both were completely shocked, giddy with excitement, and Penny made them swear not to tell anyone as she and Leonard hadn't even told their families yet. Amy had made Penny promise to Skype weekly, so she could see her baby bump development, and assured Penny she'd fly home to visit as soon as the baby was born.

"That's okay Bestie. Pregnancy is a known cause of hormonal swings. You'd better get used to them, as you've still got 7.5 months of them to come!" Amy said as Penny made a face. "I had better get this road trip started if I'm going to get to Flagstaff by sundown"

After another round of endless hugs, Penny and Bernadette looked on as Amy climbed into her car, and set off towards the east coast. Both desperately wished for a happy restart on life for Amy, and at the same time, hoped she hated it and would return home. The whole dynamic of their group seemed forever changed.


	2. Chapter 2: A New Normal

Eight years later, a Friday in June 2023

* * *

Amy stared wistfully out the window of the plane, looking down at the endless sea of clouds below. Three hours into their journey, they were only a little over halfway to California. Thankfully, Ginny and Charlie had so far slept most of the way, worn out from both the excitement and the sadness that accompanied their move.

So much had changed in the last year, and Amy hoped she was doing the right thing by uprooting their lives in Cambridge and moving them nearly three thousand miles away. She kept telling herself that having family and friends nearby would help them adjust to their new normal. Amy knew that continuing to live and work in Cambridge was too emotionally difficult for her; everywhere she went brought up memories of Andrew. Every detail of her life for seven years had involved Andrew.

Amy clenched her eyes shut trying not to tear up at the memories. It had only been eight months since the separation and divorce, and she knew she had to stay strong for her children.

Mid-reflection, Amy felt Ginny stirring beside her, and snapped back to reality. "Mommy, I'm hungry" Ginny yawned. "How much longer until we get there?"

"A little while longer, honey. We can get some lunch when we land, but I have some goldfish crackers in my bag if you want a snack now?"

"Yes, please" Ginny replied, leaning her head against Amy's shoulder.

Amy pulled her bag out from under the seat ahead of her, and found the small packets of crackers. Passing one to Ginny, she noticed Charlie sleepily looking at her.

"Would you like some too, little bear?" Amy asked her son

Charlie didn't answer, but nodded slightly and accepted the packet Amy was holding out to him. Amy also found the headsets she'd packed, and pulled them out before replacing her bag under the seat. Passing the headsets to the kids, she showed them how to work the in-flight entertainment system and set them up with a movie to watch. Satisfied that they were content, Amy closed her eyes and leaned back to take a short nap.

Two hours later, the pilot came on the intercom announcing the beginning of their descent into Los Angeles. Amy sat up quickly; she hadn't intended to sleep for so long. Looking over at Ginny and Charlie, she smiled realizing that not only had their movie finished, but that they had both also figured out how to put on another one without her help. She couldn't believe how fast they were growing up. Amy patted both her children's knees and let them know it was time to take off their headsets, as they would be landing shortly.

* * *

After the plane had landed, Amy and the children had collected their bags, and found their way towards the exit. As soon as they entered the arrivals area, Amy heard a high pitched squeal followed by her name. Looking through the crowd, she saw an amused Leonard shaking his head, and a blonde head pushing past everyone towards her. A few seconds later, she nearly fell over as Penny enveloped her in a huge bear hug.

"Bestie" Amy breathed, returning the hug. "You can't believe how good it is to see you"

"I've missed you so much! I can't believe you're finally back!" Penny exclaimed. Letting go of Amy, she knelt down and embraced Ginny and Charlie in a second bear hug. "And I've missed you two as well! Look how big you're getting. I can hardly recognize you!"

Ginny giggled at Penny's excitement. "Aunty Penny, I thought Grandma was going to pick us up?"

"She was, sweetie, but Uncle Leonard and I couldn't WAIT to see you, plus we have more room in our van for your luggage than in your Grandma's car. So we convinced your Grandma that we would pick you up… she's going to wait for you at your new house instead!"

Amy nodded, suspecting Leonard had more to do with the coordination of plans than Penny. Despite having three children, Penny was still one of the most disorganized people she knew. Fortunately, Leonard's hyper-organization skills balanced out their relationship.

The group headed towards where Leonard was waiting with luggage carts, and repeated the hugs and reunion greetings. Cramming the last suitcase into the van, they piled in and set off towards the Riley's new house.

An hour later, Leonard pulled into the driveway of the 3-bedroom ranch house Amy had purchased with his and Penny's help. Conveniently down the street from their own house, they had managed to get Amy a great deal on the price when neighbours decided to downsize. Leonard beeped the horn a few times, letting Mrs. Fowler know that they had arrived.

Ginny and Charlie eagerly bounded out of the car racing towards their new house and their Grandmother, jumping into her arms as she came outside. After a joyful reunion, and a fabulous lunch prepared by Mrs. Fowler, Leonard and Penny showed them around their new house, laughing as the kids bickered over who would get which room.

Mid afternoon, Leonard and Penny departed to pick up their kids from day camp, promising to bring them over to play with Ginny and Charlie the next afternoon. Amy sent the kids off with her mother for the night, and began the long process of unpacking the moving pods that had been delivered earlier that week.

It felt so strange to be back in California permanently. She had faithfully returned a few times a year to visit, but only ever visited with her family, and Penny and Leonard. Initially she had kept in touch with Bernadette over Skype, but after the Wolowitz's moved to Maryland a few years after Amy's departure so that Bernadette could work on a 3 year project with the NIH, they had gradually lost touch. She was scared, nervous, and excited to reunite with the group. Or at least with most of them.


	3. Chapter 3: An Awkward Reunion

Early July 2023

* * *

Giving Ginny and Charlie one final hug and kiss, Amy waved goodbye as they sprinted into her mother's house where they were spending the night. Howard and Bernie had also recently returned from Maryland, where Bernie had been working on a year long follow-up to her previous project with the NIH, and Leonard and Penny had decided a welcome back party was in order for the three of them. Mrs. Fowler had been more than happy to take her grandkids for the night so that Amy could enjoy herself and reunite with old friends.

As she drove through Pasadena to the Hofstader's house, Amy couldn't help it as she passed by CalTech and the last eight years started flashing through her mind.

* * *

Amy hadn't seen or spoken to Sheldon since that day back in May 2015 when she told him she had been offered, and had accepted a research position at Harvard, starting in three weeks. Confused, Sheldon had started rambling on about the complexities of making a relationship agreement work long-distance, until Amy stopped him saying she wanted their break to be permanent. Quietly, she had handed Sheldon a signed copy of the relationship termination notice, kissed his cheek, and walked out of apartment 4A for the final time.

Amy knew she was breaking his heart, but she also knew she couldn't continue the relationship at the pace it was going. She needed more, and Sheldon just wasn't ready to give it. She knew that she'd never be able to end things if she stayed in California, so when her dream position at Harvard suddenly opened up during their break, she had taken it as a sign.

Sheldon had tried contacting Amy countless times in the first few weeks after she left. Eventually, Penny had managed to convince Sheldon that sending Amy multiple emails and text messages a day wasn't going to help his situation, and would only serve to drive her further away from him.

Amy had only been at Harvard for six weeks when she met Dr. Andrew Riley, a fellow researcher, and professor of Chemistry. Immediately they had hit it off, spending almost all of their lunchhours together chatting about their various projects and ideas. Despite Amy's instincts telling her that she needed more time to get over her break-up with Sheldon, she couldn't help but relax and enjoy Andrew's caring and affectionate nature. It wasn't long before their lunchtime chats progressed to after-work dinners and then weekend outings.

By the end of October, Amy was spending more time with Dr. Riley than without, and their relationship soon progressed to an intimate one. Amy had finally discovered what Penny and Bernadette had been teasing her about missing out on all those years. It had been a huge shock to both of them when, after just a few months of dating, Amy discovered she was pregnant.

It took a few very emotional discussions about their future, but ultimately Amy and Andrew decided that if they were going to make their relationship work, now was as good a time as ever. Virginia Marie Riley arrived in August 2016, and her brother, Charles Alexander Riley followed a little over two years later.

For seven years, Amy had been living the idyllic life with her husband and two children until last fall when everything came crashing down.

* * *

Taking a deep breath, Amy was working up the courage to knock on the Hofstadter's door. Initially, Leonard hadn't invited Sheldon to the party, so as not to make Amy feel uncomfortable. However, Amy had insisted that after eight years, she hoped she could manage any awkwardness that came with seeing Sheldon again.

Now, standing on the Hofstadter's doorstep, she wasn't so sure. It was then a familiar voice broke her thoughts.

"Amy Farrah Fowler."

Amy paused a moment, not used to being referred to by her maiden name anymore. She turned around slowly to see Sheldon Cooper coming up the walkway. In true Sheldon fashion, he still looked exactly the same despite being eight years older.

"Sheldon," Amy murmured, "It's… it's good to see you again. It's been a long time" she said, managing a nervous smile.

"It has indeed" he replied quietly. For years Sheldon had planned what he'd say if he ever saw Amy again, and now that he had his chance he was frozen. She still looked like his Amy, but a more sophisticated version. He wondered if it was possible to get prettier with age. He noticed her hair swept back into a soft twist, and the fitted grey knit dress she was wearing. He also noticed she didn't have glasses on. Had she switched to contacts?

Neither of them said another word, as they stood there, silently looking at each other. Thankfully for both of them, any further awkward conversation was spared as Penny whipped open the door.

"Bestie! You're here! Come in! Howard and Bernie are in the living room. Raj texted to say they'd be late, he claims he and Meera are 'stuck in traffic'" Penny said laughing as she rolled her eyes.

As Amy stepped into the house, Penny noticed Sheldon hanging back. "Sheldon, get in here before all the bugs come in" she admonished; "Leonard's in the kitchen."

Sheldon stepped inside, and was relieved to see that Amy had already disappeared to the living room, likely reuniting with Howard and Bernadette and meeting their daughter Abigail. Wondering if he made the right decision in coming, he headed straight to the kitchen, where his best friend was prepping food for the grill.

* * *

"Leonard, I don't think I can do this" Sheldon said, pacing back and forth in front of the island. "I've seen Amy for less than 60 seconds and already my insides are in turmoil."

"Relax Sheldon. You don't have to talk to Amy if you don't want to. She will understand, I promise. Chances are she'll be cooing over Abby all night with Penny and Bernadette anyways."

"Who brings a baby to a party!" snorted Sheldon. "I knew Howard would be obnoxious about waving his progeny in everyone's face."

"Sheldon!" Leonard admonished, growing increasingly frustrated with his friend. "They couldn't find a babysitter, and besides, Abby is only 5 months old and Bernadette is breastfeeding. They can't exactly leave her for long periods of time. Here, help me take this out to the grill!" Leonard said, passing Sheldon a plate of raw burgers off the counter.

Sheldon eyed the platter of meat with a worried look. "I hope you know Leonard, leaving meat unrefrigerated for long periods of time leads to dangerous bacterial growth. When I get sick, I know who to blame"

"You're not going to get sick Sheldon," Leonard sighed rolling his eyes. "They've been on the counter for half an hour, while I prepped the potatoes and vegetables. And, besides, Penny's father always says it's better to put beef on the grill at room temperature. I would think having grown up in Texas, you would know that!"

Grabbing the rest of the food for the grill, Leonard and Sheldon walked out to the back patio, which connected to both the kitchen and the living room. He could see Howard holding Abby, while the three women took turns making her laugh. He half listened to Leonard chat away about the Hofstadter children, and their excitement over the upcoming school year, but couldn't stop glancing at Amy through the glass patio doors.

She appeared happy, yet he could tell there was an overwhelming sadness about her. He flashed back to that day before Halloween when he had been having lunch with the Hofstadters. Penny had noticed she'd missed six calls from Amy in the span of an hour and immediately called her back. Penny had barely been able to make out what Amy was saying through the tears; from what Sheldon could gather, apparently Amy had come home earlier that afternoon to find Andrew and his grad student having an affair.

Having overheard Penny on more than one occasion gushing about what a perfect couple Amy and Andrew were, Sheldon was furious that someone dare hurt Amy this way. Immediately his instinct was to go straight to Cambridge and give Andrew a good piece of his mind. It had taken Leonard hours to calm Sheldon down and convince him that this was not a good idea, and would probably scare Amy more than it would help her.

Penny had been devastated for her friend; despite the distance, she and Amy kept in near-daily contact. Penny had flown out two days later to stay with Amy and support her friend, and had played a huge part in convincing Amy to come back to the West Coast.

"… and then Caitlin started crying that it wasn't fair that Caroline got to use the pink plate, as if it makes the food taste different!"

Sheldon snapped out of his thoughts as he heard Leonard finish the end of a story. He hadn't a clue what most of it had been about, but he gathered it was about another one of Leonard's daughter's inane arguments.

"Really, Leonard, I don't know why you allow them to bicker over such trivial things. You should be encouraging them to use their brain cells with more stimulating activities" sighed Sheldon. "They are five and six years old, they should be reciting the elements and solving simple equations by now."

Leonard said nothing, having grown tired of explaining to Sheldon that he and Penny wanted their children to have a normal childhood. He'd also noticed that Sheldon hadn't been paying much attention to the conversation. Handing him the plate of now-steaming cheeseburgers, Leonard shut of the grill and followed Sheldon into the house.

* * *

Dinner time passed easily, with Sheldon catching up with Howard and Raj, who had arrived halfway through the meal. Much to Sheldon's relief, he didn't have to interact directly with Amy again beyond conventional social pleasantries. Amy had quickly bonded with Raj's fiancée, Meera, a molecular geneticist at CalTech, and the two spent most of the evening conversing about their mutual research interests, taking up any potential time Amy had to talk with Sheldon.

Howard and Bernadette were the first to leave that evening, as Abby was getting fussy and needed to be put to bed. Shortly after that, Raj started hinting that they should also be going as Meera had work early the next morning. Realizing that it would just be her, Sheldon, Leonard and Penny remaining, Amy quickly commented that she hadn't had much opportunity for alone time since being back in California, and had also better call it a night.

Wanting a quick escape, she said goodbye to everyone, thanking Leonard and Penny for the reunion dinner party, before walking across the street to her own home.

* * *

Settling into bed that evening, Amy replayed the evening's events in her head. Seeing Sheldon again after having had no contact for so long was indeed strange, but a part of her couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that she hadn't had much of a chance to talk to him. Knowing how poorly he handled change, she had almost expected him to react more strongly to her presence. She wondered if it would always be so awkward between them, or if he would be able to get over their past and be civil with her again.

Little did she know, Sheldon was lying awake in his own bed thinking the exact same things.

 **Author's Note: Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing! I'm overwhelmed by the response for my first story! A huge thanks to mphs95 for her immensely helpful suggestions and guidance.**


	4. Chapter 4: Settling In

**Author's Note: T** **hank you to everyone for sticking around and continuing to read my story! I struggled a bit with this chapter, and combined with summer and writers block, it wasn't finished as quickly as I would have liked. Once again, I owe a huge thank you again to my beta, mphs95 for her honesty and immense help, especially considering how busy she is herself!** **I hope you enjoy!**

Late July 2023

* * *

The next few weeks were a blur of activity for the Fowler-Riley family.

Thanks to Leonard and Penny's assistance, Amy had managed to enroll Ginny and Charlie into the same day camp as the Hofstadter children. Despite some initial teasing about their New England accents, she was relieved that they had quickly made new friends, which helped immensely with their adjustment to the move. As an added bonus, the kids were exhausted at the end of every day giving Amy some much needed time to relax and de-stress.

Amy had begun a new job with the UCLA neuroscience department and enthusiastically spent the first few weeks setting up her laboratory facilities and submitting the requisite paperwork to the university ethics board. Giving up her position as the lead scientist on the genetic addiction studies had been the hardest part of her decision to leave Harvard. However, much to her delight, after months of discussions and teleconferences, Harvard had finally agreed to collaborate with UCLA and transfered a portion of the grant funds, allowing Amy to continue leading the project from California.

Having discussed her research with Meera at the welcome back party, Amy was eager to collaborate with her. Meera's knowledge and expertise in whole genome sequencing and DNA analysis would greatly accelerate the research process. Before the night was over, they had made arrangements to meet for lunch at a café near Meera's lab at the end of the month to discuss the project further.

* * *

Arriving fifteen minutes early, Amy parked her car before glancing at CalTech across the street. It felt strange being so close to the campus on a Friday, she thought, as she reminisced of Fridays years ago when she used to meet Sheldon in his office for afternoon tea.

Entering the bustling café, Amy spied a free table and began to look over the menu while she waited for Meera to arrive. Trying to decide between carrot-ginger soup and an eggplant Panini, she glanced up at the door just in time to see Sheldon walking in.

Startled, she quickly tried to immerse herself in her menu, hoping that he wouldn't notice her. She wondered what he was doing here as she'd always known him to get his Friday afternoon tea from the café nearer to his office. Taking another quick glance towards the door, Amy realized her attempt to go unnoticed was too late.

Watching through the corner of her eye as Sheldon weaved through the tables towards her, Amy nervously bit her bottom lip. At the Hofstadter's party, he'd hardly said two words to her. Truthfully, she'd been disappointed that they hadn't conversed, but deep down knew after the way she ended things between them that she'd been lucky he'd even been cordial towards her.

Setting her menu down, Amy looked up at Sheldon as he stood awkwardly beside her table. She felt a small flutter in her stomach as she took in the familiar shy half-smile and soulful blue eyes. She could tell he was nervous, as Sheldon Cooper had never been one short on words.

Taking a quick breath, she smiled and broke the silence.

"Sheldon… Hi, how are you?"

"I needed a tea. I come here on Friday afternoons for tea. What are you doing here?" Sheldon stammered, not really answering Amy's question.

He wondered why he felt so tongue-tied in her presence. It wasn't like he'd never spoken to her before. And why were his palms so sweaty?

He noticed that she was dressed stylishly again which puzzled him. When did she make such drastic change to her appearance and wardrobe?

Other thoughts raced through his mind. Was she going to be angry with him for interrupting her lunch? Should he tell her he comes here now because the other café has too many memories? No, she'd probably get upset if he brought that up.

Breaking the rapid fire thoughts, Sheldon realized he should at least exchange social pleasantries.

"I'm good, very good actually. How are you Amy?"

"I'm well Sheldon. I'm meeting Meera here for lunch in hopes of getting her onboard with my research at UCLA. Harvard has agreed to allow me to continue working on my research here and her expertise would be a great asset to my work."

Sheldon relaxed and allowed himself to exhale. He was thrilled to hear that Amy would be continuing her research that he'd so closely followed. "Oh Amy, that's wonderful! Congratulations! I've read all your papers andyour research is excellent and quite promising. I'm happy for you."

Amy smiled at him, surprised by both the unexpected compliment and the fact that he'd read her papers. While they had been published in very reputable journals, they weren't ones that Sheldon or any of the guys' would typically read. She wondered if Sheldon realized that he'd just admitted to keeping tabs on her over the years.

Spying Meera entering the café, Amy waved her over.

"Thank you Sheldon. I'm obviously very pleased with the decision."

Seeing Raj's fiancé, Sheldon took that as his cue. "I guess I should go place my order. It was nice to see you again Amy. If you're ever at CalTech… well, feel free to stop by and say hello."

Amy nodded, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. She knew she would be at CalTech in the near future if Meera agreed to come on board. Not wanting to commit to anything, she thought it was best to keep her answer vague. "I'll keep that in mind, although my schedule is usually pretty busy. Bye Sheldon. I'm sure I'll see you around."

As she watched him walk over to the counter, Meera plopped down in the seat across from her.

"Hi Amy, I'm so sorry about that. I completely forgot Sheldon gets tea here on Fridays. I hope that wasn't too awkward for you, I know you two have a history…" Meera apologized, trailing off.

"No no, don't worry about it. It's fine. It was a lifetime ago and I've long since let bygones be bygones. We have the same circle of friends, we're bound to run into each other now and again."

Meera smiled. "That's great. He won't admit it, but he was pretty happy to hear you were coming back to California. Raj tells me you are the only person Sheldon would ever confide in. Even with Vanessa he never really opened up."

Amy furled her eyebrows, curious as to whom Vanessa was. Penny had always been good at keeping her up-to-date on all the gossip and goings-on, but she'd never mentioned a Vanessa. Not wanting to embarrass Meera, Amy simply smiled and nodded.

Placing their orders, Amy and Meera got down to business discussing the logistics and complexities of the research. Amy began with a brief overview.

"So as I mentioned a few weeks ago, through my project at Harvard, I identified a number of previously unknown genes in mice that predisposed them to addictive habits. Unlike the already known genes, these ones are unique in that we also discovered they could be switched off, effectively stopping their addictive qualities."

Seeing that she had her fellow scientists attention, she continued.

"While I'm no expert in genetics, I believe that many of these genes will also correlate with the human genome, and we're hoping to prove this by sequencing the genomes of people with severe drug and alcohol addictions. If my hypothesis is correct, the implications could be groundbreaking; we would be able to develop cures for people with addictions by shutting down these defective genes, and we could prevent others from developing incapacitating addictions in the future."

"A potential application for gene therapy. I'm intrigued. What are you thinking in terms of testing?"

Pausing briefly to accept their meals, Amy continued.

"The plan is to enroll people from all over North American into the study. My team at Harvard has agreed that it would be best to use a single laboratory for the sequencing in order to maintain consistency with the results, and we would have all the blood samples shipped there. As I'm the lead scientist running the project, it makes sense to have that laboratory be local to me. Since I have neither the technology to run the samples myself, nor the expertise in identifying significant changes as compared to the general population, I was hoping we could set up a partnership with your laboratory."

Without hesitating, Meera jumped on board. "Absolutely; I would love to work on this project with you. In fact, we have just completed an upgrade of our instruments that allows for even faster sequencing. We can now get results back within weeks instead of months."

Although she had been confident that Meera would agree to come on board, Amy was thrilled and relieved that everything was falling into place so quickly. It certainly helped to reaffirm her decision to move back home.

"That's fantastic! It's even better than the turnaround time at the Harvard laboratory."

The two women continued to chat about the potential future of the study and results for another twenty minutes, when Meera glanced at her watch and realized the time.

"I hate to eat and run on you Amy, but I've got another meeting in 10 minutes. As a formality, I have to discuss this with my department head, but I should be able to do that by the end of next week. Give me a call on Monday and we can also set up a time for you to come by and tour the lab."

Standing, Meera gave Amy a quick hug and goodbye before rushing out the door.

* * *

Seeing Meera leave the café, Sheldon looked up from his phone to steal another glance at Amy. There was something endearing about the way she was twirling a loose strand of hair around her finger as she stared intently at her computer. He wondered if he should go over and talk to her again.

Although he had been sitting across the room, his Vulcan hearing had allowed him to overhear some of their conversation, including Meera's mention of Vanessa. He'd been surprised to see a confused look on Amy's face as he had assumed Penny would have told Amy all about his other ex-girlfriend.

Sighing, he realized bringing it up would expose his eavesdropping, and swiped his phone back to the latest edition of the Neurology journal he had been reading.

* * *

As she finished up the last of her tea, Amy sent emails to her Harvard and UCLA teams informing them of the new developments. Realizing that by the time she drove across town to her lab she'd only have an hour of work left, she also sent an email to her administrator letting her know not to expect her back that afternoon. Finally, she sent Leonard and Penny each a text message to say she would pick up all the kids from camp.

Packing up her things, Amy noticed Sheldon still sitting at the counter. She contemplated stopping to ask him who Vanessa was. From Meera's tone, it sounded like an ex-girlfriend, but if that was the case she was surprised Penny had never mentioned it. Deciding against another awkward conversation, Amy made a mental note to interrogate Penny about Vanessa at the next possible chance, and slipped unnoticed out of the café.


	5. Chapter 5: An Impromptu Family Adventure

**Author's Note:** **Enormous apologies for the huge delay in updating this story. Between travelling overseas, a seemingly never ending sinus infection, and the general craziness of life, I didn't get around to finishing this chapter until recently.**

 **Thank you to everyone who has patiently watied for this chapter and who has followed, favorited, and/or reviewed my prevoius chapters. Also, thanks once again to mphs95 for reviewing and providing her insight! I promise I'll have the next chapter up much sooner!**

August 2023

* * *

The week following Amy and Meera's meeting was a quiet one. The Hofstadter's were away on their annual summer vacation in Nebraska visiting Penny's family, and for the first time since her return, Amy found herself without plans for the weekend.

With Ginny's birthday just two weeks away, Amy decided perhaps an early birthday trip was in order. Browsing online Friday night for options, she finally settled on a trip to the zoo. It seemed like the perfect idea; both children were at the stage where they were fascinated with learning about different animal species, and Amy had always wanted to take the kids to the small zoo in Boston, but with her and Andrew's busy schedules, they had never gotten around to going.

Saturday morning rolled around, and as expected, the children were ecstatic when Amy informed them of the last minute plans. As they ran whooping and hollering through the house, Amy'd had to use every ounce of patience in her body to not raise her voice as she pleaded with them to finish their breakfast lest they not go.

* * *

Arriving at the zoo, Ginny and Charlie quickly began heading towards an argument over which exhibits to see first. Amy was thankful that she'd studied the zoo map the night before in order to maneuver them through the typical public attraction chaos.

Stepping between them, Amy opened the map and showed them that the path around the zoo was designed as a big circle, guaranteeing that no exhibit would be missed. Promising them a ride on the carousel at the end of the day if they behaved, Amy guided them towards the first exhibit.

Nearly an hour and a half later, Amy was beaming as she watched her children continue to be mesmerized by each new exhibit. While she hadn't particularly enjoyed the reptile and amphibian lair, the children had been fascinated that so many colourful and interesting species existed. Charlie had attempted to ask for a pet snake for his next birthday which Amy had quickly denied, along with his second attempt requesting an iguana.

Next, they made their way to the Australian section just in time for the keeper talk on marsupials. All three were in awe of the tiny koala the keeper held as he relayed facts about the animal.

Breezing past the warthogs, wild dogs, and deer, as both children agreed that these animals were "boring and ugly", they finally arrived at the more recognizable African animals. After a short time ogling the zebras, Charlie sprinted off towards the next exhibit, rushing up to the tall fenced enclosure.

"Mommy, look! Monkeys!"

Running up alongside her brother, Ginny corrected him, smiling smugly at another opportunity to prove that she was smarter. "Charlie, those aren't monkeys. They're orangutans. They're part of the great ape family, not the monkey family. It's easy to tell because they don't have tails like monkeys and they're lots bigger."

Despite being two years younger, Charlie was quickly catching up to his sister intellectually. The local school board had offered to place him in first grade a year early, but Amy had declined, worried about how it would affect his emotional and social development.

Scowling at his sister, Charlie looked to Amy who nodded in confirmation.

As they went back to ogle over the mother orangutan with her baby, Amy heard a familiar voice.

"That's very good little lady. I see your mother has taught you well."

Turning, Amy and the children looked to see Sheldon standing a few feet behind them.

"Sheldon... hi. What brings you here?" Amy questioned curiously.

"It's the first Saturday of the month. I come to the zoo on the first Saturday of every month. I used to only come for the Koalas, but over the last few years I've developed a fondness for the primates as well." He explained softly.

Amy raised her eyebrows, slightly taken aback at this admission. In all the years she'd dated him, he never once showed an interest in primates; in fact, he'd typically made his disdain for them very clear. Choosing to ignore that comment for the time being, she proceeded to introduce him to the children.

"Sheldon, I'd like you to meet my children. Virginia is seven, and Charles is four and a half. Ginny, Charlie, this is one of mommy's old friends, Mr. Sheldon Cooper."

"I'm not seven for another 12 days" Ginny chimed, correcting her mother.

"Are you Isaac's Uncle Sheldon?" Charlie inquired.

"I am." Sheldon confirmed with a smile. "Not biologically of course, but as Leonard, Penny and I have been friends for over half our lifetimes, I am somewhat of an honorary uncle to their children."

Charlie nodded as he made the connection, having heard his friends mention their Uncle quite often. "Do you want to see the rest of the zoo with us?"

Sheldon hesitated as he looked down at the precocious child. He didn't want to interfere on their family day together, but the thought of spending time around Amy was very tempting. Ever since their brief encounter the previous week, he hadn't been able to stop thinking about her. Seeing Amy give a brief smile and nod, he agreed to walk with them for at least a little while.

Over the next few hours, Amy trailed behind Sheldon and her children as he essentially gave them a guided tour of the zoo. Sheldon seemed to know each and every animal at the zoo, and her children were delighted and enthralled with the unique facts he continually relayed.

She was torn between feeling uncomfortable, yet impressed by how at ease he was with her children. While she had no doubt he loved the Hofstadter children, she knew from Penny that he became easily frustrated with them. She felt a slight twinge of sadness for him that he'd never found someone to have children of his own with.

* * *

By the time they reached the tigers, Amy realized it was nearly two in the afternoon, and none of them had eaten since that morning. As they passed the Café Pico, she suggested they stop for a late lunch. Spying an open picnic table, she instructed the children to sit down while she ordered the food.

Passing the children their burritos, she settled down with her own taco salad when Sheldon returned to the table carrying two trays.

"I thought everyone might want churros for dessert. They're they second best in the city after Disneyland!" he explained setting one tray in the middle of the table.

"And these," he continued with a small smile as he passed Ginny and Charlie each a frozen orange and black striped drink, "Are tiger tail slushies. I always buy them as a treat for Isaac, Carrie and Caitlin when they come to the zoo with me, so I thought you two would like them as well. They're mango and blackberry slushes mixed together."

Both children's eyes widened with delight at the unexpected frozen treat. Thanking Sheldon, they happily dug into their lunch.

* * *

An hour later, they had finished both lunch and the remaining zoo sections. Approaching the entrance again, both children reminded their mother about her carousel promise.

Handing them each three dollars, Amy smiled as they raced towards the ride. Watching their anxiety over choosing which animal they wanted brought back fond childhood memories of her own trips to the zoo. Eventually they decided, with Ginny settling on a unicorn, and Charlie choosing the nearby tiger.

Leaning on the fence as she watched the children go round, Amy couldn't help but think about how much Sheldon had changed over the years. His personality was quieter and more introverted. He still rambled when he was nervous but he didn't seem get so worked up over it. And most surprisingly, he had genuinely seemed to enjoy her children. As she stared off at the carousel, she found herself wondering what paths their lives would have taken if he'd been more like this years ago.

Returning from the men's room, Sheldon couldn't help but notice Amy's figure as she leaned against the railing surrounding the carousel. In all the years he'd dated her, she'd never once worn jeans, which, judging by the way they hugged her curves, he thought was unfortunate. He wondered if he hadn't been so guarded of his emotions, and had paid more attention to her physically if things would have turned out differently.

Drawing nearer, he leaned up on the rail beside her.

"So, a fascination with the Primates huh?" Amy questioned with a small smile as she looked over at him.

Sheldon felt his cheeks reddening as he blushed. Biting his lower lip he looked at Amy.

"I knew someone once who worked closely with primates and often talked about them. I never cared much for them, until suddenly that person was no longer around and I realized I missed the daily primate drivel. The zoo helped fill that void."

Amy stared at him in shock not knowing what to say. She had made the comment in jest, and hadn't expected him to answer so openly. Before she could come up with a response, Sheldon added:

"They let me be a zookeeper for a day once! Normally they only do that for children, but Vanessa's sister had a friend who worked here and she let me help her. I got to hold a baby orangutan!"

Amy let out a small laugh. She could picture Sheldon in the keeper uniform giddier than a small child. She also noted that he'd casually mentioned this Vanessa woman that Meera had brought up last week. Just as she was about to ask him about her, the kids came running up, their carousel ride having finished.

"Mommy that was so much fun! I wish unicorns were real!" Ginny exclaimed.

"Yeah! Can we do it again?" asked Charlie.

"Maybe next time" Amy responded, anticipating that her children would be disappointed. "We need to get home soon; it's been a very long day. Why don't you run into the gift shop and I'll meet you there in a few minutes."

Both children grinned and eagerly sprinted towards the gift shop to pick out a treasure. As soon as they'd entered, Amy turned back to Sheldon.

"I had fun today Sheldon; thanks for giving us the tour of the zoo. The kids absolutely loved you."

Pausing to ponder her next thought for a moment, Amy continued:

"I'm having a birthday party for Ginny next Saturday at 2pm… our friends and their children will be there, as well as most of Ginny's friends from camp. It's not going to be anything fancy, as I'm not really up to planning a huge bash this year. I know you hate parties, and generally aren't fond of children, so I don't want you to attend just because social convention dictates you have to… but I wanted you to know you're welcome to come if you like."

To her surprise, Sheldon answered without hesitation.

"I'd love to Amy. Your children are brilliant. I always knew you'd be a wonderful mother someday. I'll see you on Saturday."

With that, Sheldon smiled and started off towards the exit. Watching him leave, Amy felt a nervous flutter in her stomach. She was suddenly both looking forward to Ginny's party and wondering whether she'd done the right thing in inviting him. She didn't need any more stress in her life, and worried that their complicated history would get in the way of becoming friends again.

Reminding herself to live in the moment and not dwell on the past or focus on the future, she headed into the gift shop to collect Ginny and Charlie. Perhaps she would put a little more effort into next weekend's party after all.


End file.
